


Object Permanence

by foggyglitter



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Epilogue, F/F, Hurt/Comfort, Post-Finale, Post-Season/Series 05 Finale
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-25
Updated: 2020-05-25
Packaged: 2021-03-02 23:33:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 938
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24365098
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/foggyglitter/pseuds/foggyglitter
Summary: Even though the war is over, the battle looms in Adora’s memory. She tries to burn the past away, but Catra has other plans.Inspired by the poem “Object Permanence” by Nicole Sealey
Relationships: Adora & Catra (She-Ra), Adora/Catra (She-Ra)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 91





	Object Permanence

**Author's Note:**

> I read this poem and it was so beautiful I had to write something about it. So, here’s a angsty Catradora one-shot inspired by it. Also read the poem! It’s beautiful.
> 
> _“Though we’re not so self-important to think everything has led to this, everything has led to this.” ___

War is the only thing Adora has ever known. She was raised to fight, to lead armies, and to destroy. And though she escaped the Horde, she still fought; on the side of good, but fought, nonetheless. When was the last time she allowed herself to simply exist without some greater goal or purpose? Who was she? What did she want?

Adora turned to study the slumbering shape beside her. The image of Catra curled up on her bed hearkened back to their childhoods. Everything had seemed so simple then, but it never was simple, was it? 

Horde Prime’s armies fell a month ago, but Adora was still replaying the moment in her head like it was yesterday: chasing the Heart of Etheria, bearing the failsafe, fearing death. And Catra pulling her from the abyss. Catra asking her to stay. It was all over now, and they could be happy. So, what was this weight in her chest?

She got out of bed, careful to not wake Catra, and made her way to the bathroom. Every time she looked in the mirror, she placed a hand on her chest, expecting the failsafe to glow back at her. But the war was over, and the failsafe was gone. So why did she still feel its weight?

Air, she decided. She needed air. She got dressed, pulled her red jacket on and sneaked quietly out of the palace. 

There was a chill in the night air as Adora existed the palace. Bright Moon was more alive than ever before. A breeze whistled through the trees, carrying with it the sound and scent of the budding nature. Adora’s actions hadn’t just destroyed Prime but renewed the magic of Etheria, and the dense forests and animal life thanked her for it. Yet the choir of chirping insects and the canopy of stars did little to calm her nerves. She shivered at a passing breeze and looked down at her arms. How long had she owned this jacket? She couldn’t remember. And though she couldn’t imagine herself without it, the jacket carried a negative feeling with it. She took it off and studied it, each seam and stitch. She saw herself standing over the Fright Zone, Catra at her side, the day she found the sword. She saw herself battling Catra across Etheria then flying across space to save her. She saw the Heart of Etheria, the failsafe, the moment she almost didn’t make it. 

She knew what she needed to do.

Adora left the palace steps and began marching into the Whispering Woods, but a voice called out to her. 

“Sleepwalking, princess?” came Catra’s voice. She came up behind Adora and wrapped her hands around her waist. “Where are you going?”

“Go back to bed. I’ll be back soon,” Adora answered, breaking from Catra’s hold. 

Always the more agile of the two, Catra lept in front of her, blocking the path into the woods. “Oh no you don’t” she said. “You can’t just wander off into the woods in the middle of the night.” She moved closer, clasping their hands together. “Seriously, what’s wrong?”

Adora shook her head and gestured to the jacket. “It’s this. I’m getting rid of it. I’m gonna bury it in the woods and forget it exists.”

“Why? What’s wrong with the jacket?”

“Everything.” Adora paused and gazed at the piece of clothing. “Everything that’s happened to us, happened between us, it’s all wrapped up in this thing. And I can’t forget it all and move on until it’s gone.”

Catra cocked her head to the side, pensive. Then she took the jacket from Adora’s hands and sat down in the grass. “Come on, sit,” she said patting the seat beside her. As Adora sat, Catra continued, “It’s not the jacket’s fault our lives were terrible.”

“But I can’t—”

“Can’t forget it all; I know. Maybe that’s okay.”

“What are you saying?”

“Do you really want to forget everything we’ve been through? I’ve done that before,” she rubbed the back of her neck, “Trust me. It’s not as peaceful as you think it will be.”

“I just don’t want to be haunted by the past forever.”

“We don’t really get a choice,” Catra gazed up at the stars. “Everything that’s happened, it’s going to stick with us. Take it from someone who spent a long time trying to run away from the past: it doesn’t work.”

“Then what do I do?”

“Embrace it. It’s all a part of you. All of the things you went through—good and bad—make you who you are.”

Adora took a moment to sit with Catra’s words. She crossed her arms over her chest and tried to make sense of the pain she couldn’t escape.

“Hey,” Catra snapped Adora out of her thoughts. “Give it time. I’ll still be here.”

Adora smiled. A tear ran down her face which Catra promptly wiped away. They shared a kiss and held each other beneath the stars. The wind whistled around them. After a moment, they parted. 

“I guess we should go back inside,” Adora said, drying her eyes.

“And this?” Catra held up the jacket.

“I don’t know. I still don’t think I want to wear it anymore.”

Catra smirked as a thought crossed her mind. “Then don’t,” she said coyly. She shrugged the jacket over her shoulders and modeled it for her girlfriend. “I think I wear it better than you anyway.”

“You definitely do,” Adora giggled. 

Catra stood and held a hand out to Adora. “You coming?”

The weight in Adora’s chest subsided for the moment. It was replaced with warmth. 

“Yes.”


End file.
